At some point, it stopped being a trend and became the reality: the most interesting, thought-provoking games aren't mega-budget retail releases, but smaller downloadable titles. Three of my top five games of 2012 could be had for a low price and a quick download.

The Walking Dead (PC, Xbox Live Arcade, PlayStation Network) :: In Telltale Games' episodic take on the comic by Robert Kirkman, even the simplest choices can have far-reaching implications. As an escaped convict attempting to care for an orphaned girl, players are forced into one impossible moral conundrum after another. The gameplay is hardly challenging — its simple puzzles and streamlined action scenes never tax your brain or your reflexes — but The Walking Dead's ethical quandaries challenge what's in your heart.

Trials Evolution (Xbox Live Arcade) :: How hard can it be to ride a dirtbike up a hill? After your 100th failed attempt to clear a near-vertical ramp with a metal pipe sticking out of the top, you'll know it's harder than you could ever have imagined — and, somehow, immeasurably more satisfying to accomplish.

Spec Ops: The Line (PC, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3) :: It looked like a generic military shooter. It played like a generic military shooter. But Spec Ops: The Line thwarted players' expectations of the genre by delivering a thoughtful, probing story about mission creep and the human costs of war.

Mark of the Ninja (Xbox Live Arcade) :: Klei Entertainment's downloadable stealth game is a masterwork of interface design. With a streamlined graphical approach to representing sound, movement, and illumination, Mark of the Ninja eliminates the cheapness that often plagues stealth-action games. It's a gem.

Diablo III (PC) :: About eight hours into Diablo III, I wondered what the big deal was. About 40 hours into it, I began to fear for my marriage, my employment, and my sanity. Blizzard's action-RPG opus was worth the 12-year wait.

THINKING MAN'S ACTION: TOP GAMES OF 2012 | December 19, 2012 At some point, it stopped being a trend and became the reality: the most interesting, thought-provoking games aren't mega-budget retail releases, but smaller downloadable titles.

BEYOND SHOOTERS | September 18, 2012 In an era of scripted set pieces and action sequences that are no more than glorified shooting galleries, Dishonored aims to give players the tools to author their own experiences.

REVIEW: DARKSIDERS II | September 04, 2012 "Gentlemen, I'm not going to mince words. THQ is in trouble. We're bleeding cash, and we need a hit game to save our ass. I want you to tell me what you're going to do to make Darksiders II that game."

REVIEW: ORCS MUST DIE! 2 | August 21, 2012 We're all happy to see more games that deal honestly and maturely with questions of life and death, and that question the player's role in perpetuating the cycle of violence.